Keeping Warm
by TheRugMaster
Summary: When a race over the Black Lake in the middle of a storm goes wrong Fred and Katie have to take refuge in a cave, and struggle to keep warm.


"Where's Katie?" I ask. I want her here in the common room, to engage in some not-entirely-meaningless flirting. Plus, I actually _enjoy_ talking to Katie, unlike most of the girls in this school, who seem to be concerned with a) clothes and make up, b) schoolwork or c) Harry Potter.

Ange looks up. "She's gone flying." She tells me "Someone's pissed her off."

"Oh." I sit there for a few minutes, staring at my half completed essay. Where would she be flying? Not the Quidditch pitch. She loves Quidditch, but thinks that flying over a field is boring. Not over the forest, she tried that once before and I nearly died laughing when she got attacked by all these crazy bats.

So, near the Black Lake. Possibly over it as the strong wind is now turning into a gale and Katie enjoys a challenge. Well, that's what she says. I say that she's just mental like that.

"I'm going for a walk." I say, jumping to my feet. "I might go to the kitchens..."

My excuse is wasted; no one's listening to me. Lee's writing a letter, George and Alicia are snogging and probably didn't hear at all and Angelina's reading.

Or so I think. Just as I get to the portrait George finally drags himself away from Alicia's lips. "Hey Fred!" he calls.

"What?"

"Don't forget your broom."

*

The gale is getting worse. It's all I and do to keep the broom steady and actually get down to the lake.

As I suspected Katie is flying over it, sweeping and soaring, looking beautiful, but most likely in a foul mood.

Hoping that it's not me that's in her black book I make my way over to her.

"Katie Bell!" I bellow over the roar of the wind.

She waves at me, then loops the loop. "What the bloody hell are you doing?" I holler "You'll get yourself killed!"

"No, I won't!" she shouts back. "I'm fine!"

She swerves dangerously near to the water, just missing a wave that would at best drench her; at worst knock her off her broom.

"Katie, I'm serious, GET BACK HERE!"

"What's up Freddie?" she taunts, laughing. "You scared?"

She flies over to me though, hovering so close that we bash knees.

"C'mon Fred its fun." She pleads. "I'll race you to the other side."

It's starting to really hammer it down, but she's got her begging face on, the one she knows I can't resist.

"Oh, god Kate, I really don't think that's a good id-GO!" I yell and set off.

"Cheat!" she screams, zooming after me. She catches up quickly. We're neck and neck. It begins to thunder and lightning- this is going to be a bad storm. Oh well.

I pull ahead- I might be half in love with the girl, but I'm not about to let her _win_ for Christ's sake- and turn my head to crow.

"Fred!" she shrieks, pointing behind me. I whip my head around just in time to see one of the tentacles of the Giant Squid waving around.

And then I hit it.

The force of the impact judders through my broom and I'm thrown from it. I know maybe five, ten seconds of freefalling through black and then I hit the water with the force of a train into a black wall.

I must black out at the impact, because the next thing I know I'm lying down on something cold and wet and uncomfortable and Katie's slapping my face.

"Fred, Fred, wake up, please, wake up-" She's saying urgently. My eyes flicker open and she sighs in relief. "Bloody hell Fred, I thought you were dead."

"You're not getting rid of me that easily." I grin.

I try to move and groan in pain. "This is your fault!" I complain, pointing an accusing finger at her.

"_My_ fault?" She sits back, trying to look innocent.

"Yes." I say firmly. "_You_ wanted to race. _You_ were flying out in here in crazy weather-"

"_You _agreed to race." She interrupts indignantly "And _you_ chose to come and find me out here."

I shut my mouth. "Ok, fair point." I admit grudgingly. "Where are we anyway?"

Katie shrugs. "A ledge in a cave. Once you fell I went flying towards you, convinced that you were going to drown-"

"Would you have missed me?"

"Of course. Who else would I get to do my divination homework?" She smirks at my expression. "Anyway, I didn't need to worry, my pass in divination was secure, because you were pushed out by the giant squid- you know," she adds thoughtfully "I think it's friendly."

"Well, that's good news." I say, shifting uncomfortably "because we seem to be its prisoners."

"Don't be stupid." Katie snorts "_I_ brought you up here, not the damn squid."

"How do you know about it?" I ask, sitting up gingerly.

Her face darkens "Roger took me here." She says shortly and then wraps her arm under my cloak and around my chest, so that she's pressed up against me.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa, hey, what are you doing?" I stutter.

"Keeping you warm by using my body heat." She says matter of factly. "If you get too cold it'll bugger you up and you'll get heart failure."

I think I'm getting heart failure right now, but it's not from the cold. My heart splutters, but I'm never one to look a gift horse in the mouth and so pull her even closer. Any old excuse. Although I suppose one might argue that possible death isn't an invalid excuse...

"So, why were you out there?" I ask curiously. "Unless you're all about extreme sports these days?"

She scowls "Roger dumped me."

Inside my heart is singing and my stomach is doing a victory flip. Outside I'm as cool as a cucumber. In a freezer. And not just in my casual reaction to the best news I've heard in a while- I really am freezing half to death here, even snuggled up to Katie.

"I thought you were going to dump him anyway?" I say carelessly.

"Well, yes, I was."

"Then what's the problem?" My hands are running up and down her back. If she asks, I'm just trying to keep warm.

"Because- because he broke up with me so that he can date Marietta Edgecombe." She holds me tighter and I start to fiddle with her hair. Ok, that's not going to get either of us warm, but it smells nice.

"I mean, what's so great about _her_?" Katie snarls. "She's thicker than Cho Chang and that's saying something."

I shrug "Maybe Roger likes stupid sluts." I tell her "Maybe he's too stupid to appreciate something good when he has it."

"Hmm." Katie shivers "God, I'm cold. Do you think it's too wet to start a fire?"

"Probably. Do you know that the best way to get warm is to climb naked into a sleeping bag with someone else?"

"I did." Katie grins mischievously "But I couldn't remember the charm to produce one."

She releases me and tries to move away, but I cling to her waist.

"Don't move, I'm cold." I whine like a kid. To my surprise she doesn't protest, just sits back against me and tucks her arm around me.

We sit like that for a few minutes, then, with difficulty, she pulls her wand out.

"Sorry, I really need a fire." She says "We'll just hag out here until the storm stops- or at least calms down- and then we'll fly back."

She tries unsuccessfully to light one, and then gives up, sighing. "Its way too wet- do you know a spell to dry it up?"

I shake my head, now shivering so violently, my teeth chatter. She tucks her wand away and looks closely at my face.

"Oh my god Fred, your lips are blue!" She takes off her cloak and wraps it around me. I try not to gawp at her shirt that's clinging to her damp skin, and the little flowers on her bra that's showing through...

She snaps her fingers in front of my face. "Pervert." She says, but she's smiling and looking quite pleased about it.

"J-just enjoying the s-scenery"

She kneels in front of me, shivering herself, rubbing my arm to try and generate some heat.

"We really need to get you warm." She says, running her fingers lightly across my lips. As they trail down across my cheek I catch her hand unthinkingly and press it to my mouth.

For several seconds we look at each other. Then simultaneously we move and finally, at long last, I am kissing Katie Bell.

"You know what?" I gasp when we finally break apart "Maybe we don't need to start a fire to keep warm."

*

It turns out that we both develop pneumonia from our little jaunt to the cave. Madam Pomfrey is horrified and keeps the pair of us separated from society. For two weeks I'm shivering, I have an uncontrollable fever and I'm slightly freaked out by my blue fingertips. I feel like crap and I know Katie's feeling the same because George told me.

But it's ok. Because I know that once we both recover we'll take another little trip to the cave. And this time I won't be cold at all.

**A/N I wrote this on the train while I was on holiday earlier in the week. The train was amazing, it was exactly like the Hogwarts train, only black instead of red. Oh and it was in somerset, not from london to scotland. But that didn't stop me from acting out the dementor bit in the third film with my sister lol. Anyway I hope you liked it. If you did, please review! And I'm also going to shamelessly plug my other stuff now, if you like it check out Lines of Lightning, or any of my other Fratie stories which WILL be posted soon =] Thanks TheRugMaster xXx **


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